WSJ: Forget About Black Swans, the One Floating Ahead is Neon

THE INTELLIGENT INVESTOR JULY 23, 2011
Forget About Black Swans, the One Floating Ahead is Neon
By JASON ZWEIG

You've heard of black swans—events that are unthinkably rare, immensely important, and as unpredictable in advance as they are inevitable in hindsight. Now, with no one ruling out a default or downgrade of U.S. Treasury debt, investors face a new kind of threat: what we will call the neon swan, an event that is unthinkably rare, immensely important and blindingly obvious.

For Blackstone, Real Estate Now Giveth

http://online.wsj.com/

EARNINGS
July 22, 2011

For Blackstone, Real Estate Now Giveth

By GREGORY ZUCKERMAN And AMY OR

Blackstone Group LP, (BX) like many of its private-equity peers, suffered paper losses from the collapse of the property market. Now, surging real-estate profits are helping to drive gains for the private-equity powerhouse.

Colliers: German office leasing market sees vacancies decline (DE)

Colliers: German office leasing market sees vacancies decline (DE)
Thursday 21 July 2011

The German office leasing market showed its most positive side in the first half of 2011 in terms of take-up of space.

Just under 1.42 million m² of space was taken up in the six most important centers of office activity, an increase of almost 19% from the previous year. At the same time, this is the second best half-year result since 2005,” emphasizes Andreas Trumpp, Head of Research at Colliers International in Germany.

http://www.europe-re.com/system/main.php?pageid=2616&articleid=18515

WSJ: Europe Launches a Massive Greek Bailout

MARKETS JULY 22, 2011
Europe Launches a Massive Greek Bailout
Plan to Contain Crisis Likely Means First Euro-Zone Default

By CHARLES FORELLE, PATRICIA KOWSMANN and COSTAS PARIS

BRUSSELS—Euro-zone leaders agreed Thursday on a new €109 billion ($157 billion) bailout for Greece and new steps to prevent its debt crisis from metastasizing across the Continent—in a plan expected to trigger the first debt default by a nation using the common currency.

US Existing Home Sales: A minor disappointment (B. Jones)

Dip in June resales likely will prove temporary.

The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing dwellings retreated by 0.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.77 million in June the slowest selling pace since last November.

CNNMoney: Existing home sales dip in June

Existing home sales dip in June
Ben Rooney July 20, 2011: 11:20 AM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Sales of existing homes dipped in June as buyers unexpectedly backed out of contracts, according to an industry group.

Bloomberg: Bank Delays May Push 1 Million U.S. Foreclosure Filings to 2012

Related News: Bloomberg, Finance, Real Estate, US, Personal Finance

Bank Delays May Push 1 Million U.S. Foreclosure Filings to 2012
By Dan Levy - Jul 14, 2011 1:00 PM GMT+0900

Lender delays in processing home- loan defaults will push as many as 1 million U.S. foreclosure filings from this year to 2012 or beyond, casting an “ominous shadow” on the housing market, according to RealtyTrac Inc.

Brazil: May growth was lower than expectations.

Early signs of moderation. The central bank's monthly proxy for real GDP growth (IBC-Br) increased 0.2% m/m s.a. in May (consensus: 0.4% m/m), after an increase of 0.5% m/m in April. As a reference, the average monthly pace during Q1 2011 was 0.5% m/m. The annualized 3-month moving average is now running at 4.2% m/m s.a.a.r. (seasonally adjusted annual rate). That is significantly lower than the 6.0% pace in March, and good news given the need to cool the economy below potential in order to curb underlying inflation pressures. Most estimates of “potential” growth fall in the 4.0%-5.0% range. The year-on-year comparison actually accelerated to 4.3% y/y from 2.5% y/y a month before.

Bloomberg: U.K. Unemployment Claims Climbed Last Month at Fastest Pace Since May 2009

U.K. Unemployment Claims Climbed Last Month at Fastest Pace Since May 2009
Q By Scott Hamilton - Jul 13, 2011 5:35 PM GMT+0900

U.K. jobless claims rose at their fastest pace since May 2009 last month, a sign the recovery is struggling to generate enough jobs to offset the deepest government budget cuts since World War II.

Bloomberg:French Banks Face Greatest Italian Risk

French Banks Face Greatest Italian Risk
Q By Fabio Benedetti-Valentini - Jul 13, 2011 7:01 AM GMT+0900

French banks, including BNP Paribas SA and Credit Agricole SA (ACA), have the most at risk from the euro- region’s debt crisis infecting Europe’s largest borrower: Italy.